Mental Health and Wellbeing

Since the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic, doctors, nurses, attendants and other healthcare workers are actively engaged on the frontlines to manage patients. They have a high risk of developing anxiety, depression and stress during this period. Dr. Milan H Balakrishnan MD DPM, Consultant Psychiatrist and Counsellor at Bombay hospital and Masina hospital, Mumbai helps us understand the issues better.   A few studies have been carried in the recent months to assess the mental impact…

We have to break the silence surrounding grief, especially around death by suicide, and learn to deal with sorrow in a healthy and sensitive manner, writes psychologist Chandra Ramamurthy. I am a Clinical Psychologist by training. I lost my son, Naman Dutt, age 17 years, by possible suicide. The reason why I say possible suicide is because the circumstances of his death still baffle me. Naman was diagnosed with depression and though I have seen severe clinical depression in my practice, I never…

Dr Avinash De Sousa, consultant psychiatrist and psychotherapist, talks about how bereavement counselling has become crucial in the times of Covid -19 to deal with sudden deaths and inability to mourn satisfactorily. In times of the Covid pandemic, terms like grief therapy and bereavement counselling have gained significance. Could you tell us a little bit about these concepts? Grief Therapy is a form of therapy which is administered by means of counselling or psychotherapy to an individual who…

A handy list of resources for living with the coronavirus and managing your chronic conditions. Just look for your condition below. If you don't find what you are looking for, please leave a comment and we will get back to you.     We must live with Covid-19 pandemic for a while. For people with chronic conditions like diabetes, hypertension, chronic kidney disease, rheumatic conditions, pulmonary conditions, it is even more essential to manage these conditions better. For e.g. a…

Kavita Chaddha has multiple issues which she handles in the course of a day wth proper medication, a healthy diet and the right exercises. She talks about how she juggles her life, home and work in the course of a day Hi! I am Kavita Chaddha, diagnosed with Scleroderma (an autoimmune disease) in 2009 by a rheumatologist.   I am bipolar too. I am also a working professional (Librarian), a wife and a mother of a 9-year-old girl. I am a doctoral student too. My life is four-dimensional –…

Emotional Resilience for Persons with Disabilities and persons with chronic conditions with Clinical and Rehabilitation Psychologist Divya Parashar. This was in the context of the COVID pandemic but there are lessons in there for all times. We talked about What is emotional resilience Anxieties faced by people with disabilities What is psychological resilience What makes people resilient How to build psychological resilience Effects of suspension of therapy due to covid How to overcome…

Psychotherapist H'vovi Bhagwagar points out that today an increasing number of Indian men are feeling the pressure of gender role strain and need to be motivated to seek help for mental health issues. These issues are likely to be accentuated during difficult times like the COVID-19 pandemic or an economic downturn. The stigma associated with therapy is a global phenomenon, and for a very long time it was believed that therapy was only for the very disturbed, poverty-ridden, drug addicts and…

Sleep disorders may make a person more vulnerable to psychiatric illnesses, intensify the severity of the symptoms points out Dr Nileena N.K.M, Specialist in Psychiatry and Sleep Medicine, and stresses the importance of better sleep for better life. Plus Tips For Good Sleep. What is the correlation between mental health and sleep? Sleep and mental health go very much hand in hand in our day to day life. Many of the psychiatric illnesses are seen to be associated with sleep complaints and…

Mental Health is an increasing concern during Covid-19 due to restrictions, extended lockdown, distancing - social and physical. PatientsEngage and CMHLP - Centre for Mental Health Law & Policy are hosting a webinar series on ‘Mental Health During COVID-19’  COVID-19 is stressful for all of us especially in the context of the extended lockdown. There is a lot of uncertainty, confusion and fear around this lockdown and social distancing. On Monday 20th April 2020, 4pm IST…

There is increased evidence and understanding that chronic digestive disorders like IBS, IBD and gastrophageal reflux cannot be separated from the psychological wellbeing of a person. In light of this, we spoke to Dr. Naresh Bhat, a pioneering gastroentrologist and Dr. Girish Chandra, a Psychiatrist.    Dr. Naresh Bhat, Chief of Gastroentrology, Aster CMI Hospital, Bengaluru There are several disorders which are referred as Gut Brain Axis or Functional GI disorders. They can affect…